Has anyone else wondered about this?

[naut]

Now that you mention it it is a tad weird, I don't really have time to tinker with it though.

[macsen rufus]

I have noticed that if you change target half-way through "loading", missile troops seem to need to reload their weapons, which is a bit daft. You'd expect them to be able to point their already loaded weapons in a different direction, wouldn't you?

I BELIEVE, but could be wrong, that if you keep the "fire at will" turned OFF, the weapon will stay loaded so long as the unit doesn't have any other orders (ie moving!). The reason I BELIEVE this, is that I find it more effective to toggle "fire at will" than to target units specifically. I very often do this in BIG defensive battles where I have a limited number of missile units. Typically I'll have arbs or guns in the front row, set to hold formation so they don't skirmish away, then when the enemy come in range, switch them over to "fire at will". The result is that all units set off an immediate and simultaneous volley, usually causing enough damage to rout the approaching units (arbalesters at ten paces, anyone? ) THEN I turn off the "fire at will" until the next close approach, and repeat. Having said all that, it's just an impression gained in the heat of battle, and I haven't spent time and effort analysing the loading times etc. And of course it is a purely defensive tactic - with an attack you are constantly advancing and that seems to nullify the advantage.

EDIT: on a second's extra reflection, I think this may be due to the troops loading and aiming when the enemy approach, even though they've not yet had the "order" to fire, hence turning on "fire at will" works immediately.

[Eternity]

I just ran some tests on this, with archers and longbowmen (these have the shoot immediately flag off), and crossbow and kerns (these have the shoot immediately flag on). In the case of the archers and longbowmen, if I leave fire at will on, and when the enemy comes into range, they'll go from standing -> reloading -> aiming -> firing, therefore showing that the flag does seem to suggest that they must reload before firing. In the case of crossbows and kerns, when I leave the fire at will on, they'll immediately pull off their volleys when the enemy comes into range. This time, it's standing -> aiming -> firing, with no need to reload, so it seems the flag works correctly.

However, the real problem comes into play when I decide click on the enemy! The archers and longbowmen info will go from standing -> reloading -> aiming -> firing -> reloading -> aiming -> firing, but the first volley does nothing. They won't even play the aiming animation, but just stand there while they "waste" their first volley and fire on the second. It is similar in the case for crossbows and kerns; they'll go from standing -> aiming -> firing -> reloading -> aiming -> firing, but their first volley won't do anything, with no animation change. So, it seems that the fire immediately flag (in PROJECTILESTATS.TXT) does work, but it's just that you have to leave them on fire at will for it to work correctly.

[Knight of the Temple]

Thanks for the additional input! Eternity, what you said in particular was very helpful as I probably wouldn't have thought of trying that myself! And what you said makes a lot of sense to me so far as I practically never have any missle unit on 'Fire At Will'---I always like to control firing and select targets myself. So I'll have to try it out and see if that does indeed make things work a bit more sensibly!

One thing though . . . when you tried clicking on a target and you noticed these issues, did you have 'Fire At Will' on or off? I mean, can you select a target and have it work properly so long as 'Fire At Will' is on at the same time, or do you need to simply leave 'Fire At Will' on and NOT click a target for the unit to fire properly?

That's all interesting though! As I really didn't get the way things were working.

[Adrian II]

So, it seems that the fire immediately flag (in PROJECTILESTATS.TXT) does work, but it's just that you have to leave them on fire at will for it to work correctly.

Aha! I have often wondered about the mysteriously disappearing first volley. Now I know.
Good show, Eternity.

[Knight of the Temple]

Well, I've just tried a few quick custom battles to test out Arbalesters using the 'Fire At Will' toggle, and I was pleased to see that they do indeed fire properly if you just leave them to 'fire at will'! That's good news!

Unfortunately though, whether 'Fire At Will' is on or off, it doesn't stop the first firing round from screwing up if you actually select your target. But at least now I know how to get it working properly, and from now on when I'm in a hurry and need that first shot to go off I can just toggle 'Fire At Will' and hopefully they'll hit the target I had in mind and after that I can just manually select the target and it carries on fine from there.

So if you want to charge down an enemy unit with some Arbalesters and need to get a quick shot off, just double click to have them run into range as normal, but make sure 'Fire At Will' is off, and then when they go into their screwy firing round, click 'Halt' to stop firing, and then click 'Fire At Will' and wahey, they'll shoot right away with no problems (and hopefully at your intended target - just make sure your facing is good).

This thread didn't turn out to be a waste afterall.

[Caerfanan]

Wooooo, that is intersting business....

I was complaining about xbows in the viking campaigns...

So if I'm correct:
1/ If you click on an enemy, everyone will take the full cycle firing, AND LOOSE THEIR ARROWS
2/ With xbows and javelins, toggling the fire at will unleashes an effective volley instantly.

I'm so in a hurry to try this.

Thanks a lot, guys!

[Knight of the Temple]

If you click on an enemy your missle unit will screw up its first round of firing and not actually fire anything when it says 'firing'. It will fire properly the second time.

If you have 'Fire At Will' on and DON'T click anything, then your missile units will fire the first volley with no problems, and fire as you would expect (archers load before firing, crossbows don't (i.e. they already have their weapon loaded)).

[bamff]

Wooooo, that is intersting business....

I'm so in a hurry to try this.

You and me both, Caerfanan!